the silent gift
by im a genius
Summary: as long as she can remember menda has been a prisoner in the fortress of tinnagel but has the escape she allways dreamed of finding found her?
1. Chapter 1

**F**or almost as long as she could remember menda had been behind walls. A slave in the fortress of tinnagel. Her life was the barest of existence a constant cycle of fear drudgery and non stop work, she was lucky to have two hours sleep a day. Most slaves in tinnagel died after a year or two of work, but not menda. No she had been here for 16 years now. Nobody at tinnagel could tell you how she got there only that she had appeared those 16 long years ago. Some said she was an angel sent down by the lord to help guide those locked in the fortress others said that she was a devil and only evil powers could have kept her alive this long . They were the less rational approaches, most just said that her parents must have worked there and died leaving her behind. Menda worked hard and kept herself to herself never talking to other slaves never the masters, but most masters like their slaves to be quiet and stay quiet.

The fortress was well defended but was never attacked at tinnagels back rose a huge cliff and along the front wound the great river tinn around the fortress laid hundreds of miles of moor land and gave tinnagel a very very desolate feel. The large wooden gates that served as an entrance were rarely opened they were kept closed all through the night and they only opened in the day for the delivery of salted meat and cheese. But every now and then a live cargo would come in humans, criminals and homeless people, who weren't 'worthy' to be on the streets or in the towns.

Only one hundred and fifty or so souls lived in tinnagel and that number would constantly rise and fall as more slaves and soldiers were brought in and more died. At the top of the tinnagel food chain was the warden and his wife. She was a shadow of what she used to be, but then anyone that has bared fourteen children would have probably been the same. On hot sunny days a reflection of the master's glasses could be seen in the tower as he watched the slaves break rocks for constructing a new wall or watching the hanging of a criminal from in side the fort. Up close the master looked like a kind and compassionate man but everyone knew different the well shaven tidy man might have fooled new slaves but the few who survived the first month knew different one step out of line and he would personally beat you. Yes this man was not nice let me tell you.

It was the second day of the fifth moon in the era of the wolf and menda was heading to the cow shed to get milk and tend to the needs of the cows, even they were higher in the pecking order than her, as she collected her stool and bucket something startled her. The stool was lying smashed on the floor she looked around nobody was here who would have done this inside tinnagel she had no enemies but then she had no friends.

"Is anybody there!" she cried out in to the dark shed

"I know you're here, come on show yourself!" her voice cracked as she spoke not talking to anybody did have its disadvantages.

"Come out I know you're here!" she yelled again into the gloom

What was that, the scurrying of a mouse, no it couldn't be. She put down the bucket and picked up a smashed piece of her stool.

"Come out!" she yelled into the gloom once again

But this time she got a result there was some coughing then out of the shadows raised the dark figure of a man……


	2. Chapter 2

**_heyo! this is the second chapter of the silent gift so please read and reveiw, thanks_**

Kendon rose he had been in tinnagel for 4 hours and the moment he entered he hadn't liked it. The place was littered with soldiers and heavily defended it would nearly impossible to attack. He had got into tinnagel by posing as a trader then when all the commotion of fresh food arriving had occurred he had sneaked up on a guard and ran his small but deadly knife in beetween the mans ribs then pulled out fast he then swaped the rags he was wearing onto the guard and stolen the guards uniform the guard was instantly desposed of and kendon had taken his place. But now only four hours into the spying mission he had been found. A young slave stood in front of him holding up a chair leg

"what's all the commotion" he said trying to sound confident but still he clutched his knife if this all turned sour he still had one way out.

"sorry sir didn't mean to wake you sir please forgive me sir" the slave blurted out she was falling for it,

Menda couldn't believe her bad luck when she had first seen the man rising out of the shadows she thought it must be a intruder or a slave trying to get some rest, she had grabbed the chair leg and prepared to strike the intruder but then he stepped out the shadows and she recognized the uniform of the guard. Her heart sank if she had found an intruder she would have hit him and got some glory but this was a guard and now she knew the punishment. The master would beat her until she was dead.

When kendon had first seen the girl her eyes were wild and her body was tense she was ready to fight. But now she had changed her eyes were full of sadness and fear. Her body was riddled with bruises and her hands were filthy and rough from work. She dropped the chair leg and looked up into the thin sliver of light that pierced the rafters of the roof , the white light splashed across her face and she returned her gaze to him

"well" she said

"what" he replied

"your not going to report me?" she questioned her voice fearful and shaky

"why would I do that?" he asked her

Menda realised. This was no guard.

Kendon tried to force a smile the woman stared into his eyes.

"What are you doing here?" she asked

"don't speak to a guard like that!" he replied he had to keep up his cover

She stared at him more a dull ache in the side of his temple awoke him . still she stared into his eyes.

"you are not a guard" she said the pain in his temple increased

"what are you talking about!" he protested the pain increased further,she stared

"your name is………..kendon shaughts……………."

"no I'm a guar..d" the pain burned and burned he found it hard to speak

"you are not you are a spy and you killed the guard this uniform belongs to!" she still stared into his eyes.

"no……..no……." he tried his hardest but couldn't pull away from her stare

"You are admit it!" she yelled her eyes glazed over with anger,

"no stop ……shouting ………." The pain increased even further

" no… no…" he struggled to say ,she broke her stare the pain instantly subsided,

Menda ran and bolted the heavy stable door shut

"now then kendon you are going to tell me everything"…………………………

**_a big thank you to my only reveiwer of chapter one Why Ron and i agree my last one was crap_**


	3. Chapter 3

**yo gees numa 3 is up!**

The warden looked out of his window. Something was wrong he could feel it in his long service of 30 years he had only felt like this once that was when his 1st wife had fallen gravely ill and when he and the doctors ran to her it was too late, she was dead. And now he could feel something was wrong yes everybody in this fortress was in trouble. But how could he say it he couldn't just walk out and say to everybody I'm sorry but we must all leave, but then again he was the warden he didn't need an excuse.

He was done for somehow someway she had figured him out, Kendon lay struggling to breathe. The pain in his temple had gone but the mere memory of the pain had left him on the floor struggling to move. He looked up, standing over him was the girl her eyes were full of rage and she was holding his dagger.

"Give me that" he pulled himself up

"No" she replied and gave him a sharp kick in the ribs

Her face looked worn and had a bruise on her right cheek.

"How did you get that?" he asked

"None of your business" she replied and gave him another kick in the ribs

He lay there, he did not know how long he had been here more than three hours he reckoned the sun had passed over the hole in the roof and had disappeared from view a while ago. He was lying there waiting the slave had gone, for now, to get more water for the cows. The ropes she had bound him with dug into his wrists and his ankles. He pulled himself up to a hay bale he hadn't slept in hours first the long trek to the fort then sneaking around and finally getting caught he had just settled down intending to catch some shut eye when she found him. He laid his head on the hay and his eyes slowly shut.

The ice cold water fell on his face like a 10 ton weight he tried to shout but he couldn't his words slurred his hands were free he looked up there was the girl holding his knife he tried to pull himself up, he received a kick in the teeth.

"Wahh u don" he managed to say

"You are here to liberate the castle" she said

"yessss" he slurred again

"You will take me with you" she ordered him

"If I reeeefffuse" he slurred again

"I turn you in" she said calmly

Kendon had once been a proud warrior but was injured by a stray arrow and could no longer wear heavy armour. The elders of his village had decided that he would have better use as a spy. For weeks he was trained and set through rigours courses where he had to sneak past dogs and walk over perilous heights just so he would not be found. But of course with a risk like this it was no surprise that one day he fell off and was injured as a dog bit down on his hand. And now all that training and agony had been for nothing he had been found.

"Would you?" he questioned

"Yes" she replied

he groaned, all the planning all the time and effort, it was a waste, he would be hung he was going to be a 'entertainment' for the prisoners as they watched him hang from the walls then take his body away. Only one man knew what happened to the bodies…. He was at her mercy…..

The warden ran franticly about his office papers flew this way and that. His wife and 12 children had left under his strict orders many found this odd and the wardens explanation was simple he walked down the small stair case and onto the stage and stood in front of all the guards then warned them

"Anyone tries to stop them and they will be killed and disposed of!" his voice boomed a prisoner was pulled onto the stage a knife was drawn ,as they looked in horror as an example of what would happen was given

A lone scream echoed across the courtyard, the crows descended.

**thank you to my reveiwers!**


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